Scoop Newsletter

What's the Scoop? April 2017Welcome to the first issue of the DDS Scoop - an electronic employee newsletter that you asked for! Wehope you will enjoy reading about our Team Members' accomplishments and our Agency achievements. Ifyou have a story idea or comment about the newsletter, please email us at (addnewsletteremail), Welcome Aboard!NEO March 2nd NEO March 16th Nikiah Abdul Khaliq onsider highlighting products or services, sales Contact Center or promotions, personal bios, and more. Use images that complement your message, and Benjala Brown link your images to supporting resources. Sandy Springs CSC Ira Brown Jr. Athens CSC Katherine Dudley Brunswick CSC Janet Hockett Lagrange CSC Corinthian Johnson Lawrenceville CSC Chasity Peters Between CSC

Danielle SpikesLawrenceville CSC Jessica TaylorLocust Grove CSCFaithful Service 25 Years Carla Newell-Mapp (Finance) 15 Years Carrollton CSC Sandra Young 10 Years Call Center Felma Andrews Investigations Danny Smith 5 Years Central Issuance Yessenia Daggs Cartersville CSC Jerry Faw Investigations Calvin Heard Columbus CSC Dana Hickman Investigations John Keiser Columbus CSC Thomas Parry MEET Deputy Commissioner Ricky Rich The new DDS Deputy Commissioner, a life-long resident of Gainesville with a successful career in and around Law Enforcement, who also enjoys classic cars and the arts, reveals a few things about himself to DDS Scoop!His first impression of Life at DDS DDS seems to really embrace the TEAM concept and arededicated to the overall Mission, working across division lines in a cooperative spirit.What he hopes to contribute to DDS I hope to see if I can find any gaps where I can use myexpertise and experience to help fill them; one area that is dear to me from my law enforcementbackground is the area of statewide safety and security.Two words that best describe him People PersonHobbies he enjoys away from the office Classic cars; I got into it by accident as my grandfatherbought a brand new 1964 Ford F100 truck and it got handed down to me in really bad shape; I had itfully restored What makes him tick I enjoy being in a position to be able to help and be of service toother people. I enjoy trying to make a difference, whether in my personal life in my community or in mywork. I am involved in Project D.A.N. - it is intended to put Naloxone (Narcan) in the hands of firstresponders and law enforcement officers all across Georgia to offset narcotic overdoses

His favorite snack item Doritos or Rocky Road ice cream His favorite sports team Georgia Bulldogs Most interesting place he has visited I’ve made several trips to Nappa Valley to tour the wineries. Famous person he has met While I was at GOHS, I met the cast of the movie “Wild Hogs” including John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, and William Macy. I got to spend a little extra time with John Travolta and he was extremely nice and very respectful of law enforcement. Must-see TV show “24” the original TV series Where he makes reservations for dinner Luna’s - an upscale restaurant in Gainesville, a friend of mine owns it, and I’m a special occasion regular there; We also like to attend plays and events at the Fox Theatre and dining at a variety of restaurants; I have enjoyed seeing “Phantom of the Opera,” “Elvis Live,” “Live at the Sands” and others. The best piece of advice he was ever given “Be yourself” and “do what you say you will do”DDS JUMBLEINSTRUCTIONS: Team members who unjumble all the following wordscorrectly will be entered to win a $20 gift card to Subway. The winner will beannounced in the May newsletter. If there are no winners, the prize will rolloverto the next month. Only one submission per team member is allowed. Emailyour submission to Jenine Ingram at [email protected] by no later than 5:00p.m. on April 15th. Hint: These are words we use at DDS on a dailybasis!

Driving To Save Lives The Team at Locust Grove hosted an exciting event when NASCAR came to town! Joey Gase is an up and coming driver who is an ambassador for Lifelink and organ donation. After losing his Mom unexpectedly, his family donated her organs helping over 60 individuals. That moment fueled his passion to merge organ donation promotion with racing. He drives the Lifelink Car #52 and allowed fans at Locust Grove to put their hands all over his car before he ran at Atlanta Motor Speedway! Watch this short video of his visit. A big thanks goes to Team Locust Grove for allowing us to take over ,as they continued to provide exceptional customer service. Watch the video below for more! NASCAR Day at Locust GroveKaren Brooks and Sandra Williams from OIS supported the event.

Join the DDS Credit Card Collection Challenge! Take the challenge! We started with only 16% credit card usage at the CSCs in 2013, and we have made incredible progress over the past few years! As of the end of January 2017, the statewide average for credit card usage was up to 53.32% - that’s more than a 37% increase! While this is a remarkable and commendable improvement, the DDS Finance Team is challenging the competitive spirit of our CSC Managers to increase usage up to 75% by the end of this calendar year. We will begin recognizing each Center that reaches the 75% threshold each month in the new DDS Scoop newsletter. RHONDA'S AWARD WINNING CHILI RECIPE2016 First Place SCCP Chili Cook-Off Winner Rhonda Johnson from the Help Desk was kind enough to share her recipe withus...complete with the two SPECIAL INGREDIENTS! Bon Appetite!! Enjoy! Compliments of Rhonda’s Kitchen.Meats: Ground Turkey (not lean) (2lb) and *Turkey Sausage (1lb) *SPECIAL INGREDIENT*Diced tomato 16oz and tomato sauce 16ozOptional: chili Beans/Black Bean or Red Kidney Beans (12oz)Onion (diced)2 cloves Garlic (diced) or to tasteFirst saute onions & garlic Add meat until brown (no longer pink) Then add tomatoes *Season to taste (see below) Sautee allingredients above together…onion & garlic first then add meat.*Seasonings Oregano or Italian Seasoning, Crush Red Pepper flakes, Chili PowderSugar (pinch) *SPECIAL INGREDIENT* Sea Salt, Ground Black PepperCook in Slow Cooker (low temperature) until all flavors are incorporated…approx..1 hour. Commissioner Moore presents the gold to Rhonda Johnson

News from Project Management/Georgia Electronic Citation Processing System (GECPS)Dekalb State Traffic Court Division, formerly known as Dekalb Recorder’s Court, is one the largest courts in the state ofGeorgia. The court transmits approximately 3,500 citations monthly. Prior to January 2017, Dekalb State Traffic Court Divisionhad approximately 18,000 errors that were transmitted to customer records. After some major changes within the court, thenumber of errors received has decreased significantly. Some of the reasons given for this reduction in errors are reduction injailed drivers, increased involvement of judges in the transmission process, daily communication between the court and theGECPS team, and dedicated court employees. Consequently, the Dekalb State Traffic Court division has been more consistentin submitting citations within 10 days (a key quality metric). A big “thank you” to Dekalb State Traffic Court Division for takingthe steps to get back on track! The Medical Review Unit Ehh, What's Up Chuck?The Medical Review Unit has been visiting each of the The Office of Investigative Services (OIS) is proud toPhysicians on the Driver’s License Advisory Board announce that effective in March 2017 Charles(DLAB). Courtois aka “Chuck” will transfer to Investigative Services as Manager of the Support Services Division.  The Board consists of Physicians in the following specialty areas: Neurology, Chuck Courtois is a devoted family man with two Ophthalmology, Internal Medicine, Geriatric children both in college one at Georgia Southern and Medicine, Psychiatry, Hospice and Palliative one at Georgia State. Medicine, and Orthopedics. He has a Political Science degree from Georgia State  When there is cause to believe that a licensed University. He has been with DDS a little over 15 years driver or applicant may not be physically or and has worked in several divisions within DDS. His mentally qualified to operate a motor vehicle, last assignment was as Program Evaluator within the the department conducts an investigation PMO division. based on information from various sources to determine a person’s driving ability. If Chuck has received several awards for his commitment conflicting or complex medical information is to excellent customer service at DDS including a received, the Medical Review Unit engages a STITCH Award and Governor's Customer Service member of the DLAB to render a medical Champion. He also makes a mean pot of chili and was opinion and recommendation. Members of the last years running up in the SCCP Chili Cook Off! advisory board are also called upon to review and give feedback on our processes, Photo above shows Rick Miller, Director of OIS, procedures, and forms. congratulating Chuck.  There were 13 referrals made to the DLAB in FY16 .

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Records Management Click Here! Balancing the Scales The Legal Division handles all court, legal, and risk management matters at DDS. This includes all implementation of statutes, rules, regulations, and procedures, as well as release of information through open records and subpoenas. All subpoenas and open records request should be sent to the Legal Division. We are happy to assist you with questions you may have regarding DDS topics ranging from rules, secure ID, to immigration, and other topics. When in doubt, please ask for help. However, please do not share our contact information with customers. Our division is a seven person team that includes 4 attorneys and 3 support staff: Angelique McClendon, General Counsel [email protected] Mindy Park, Deputy General Counsel (transactional and employment matters) [email protected] Vicki Judd, Assistant General Counsel (Departmental Hearings and Judicial Outreach) [email protected] Latoya Doucette, Assistant General Counsel (Title VI Coordinator) [email protected] (for questions or complaints regarding language accommodations or alleged discrimination) Mary Williams, Legal Administrative Assistant [email protected] Tona Harrell, Legal Administrative Assistant [email protected] Crystal Senterfitt, Secure ID Specialist [email protected] Open Records Request and Inquiries [email protected] The New DDS Website

www.dds.georgia.gov New Name; New Look Over the past year, the Information Technology Team has worked with across all Divisions to enhance the website for our customers. The website has a fresh, contemporary look and is easier for customers to navigate while locating valuable driver’s licensing information. The content was streamlined and outdated content was eliminated. The new website is user friendly, compatible with smartphones and tablets, and contains accessibility functions for persons with hearing and vision disabilities.From left to right: (standing) Sharonda Harris-Bailey, Mushtaq Have you noticed the new search function? The searchMohammed function is now front and center. Statistics showed users(sitting) Debora Rawls and Erika Jackson. searched our old site instead of clicking on the items on our front page. Over time this search function will become more intuitive and make it easier for customers to find the items used most often. Congratulations go out to the IT Team responsible for the successful implementation of the new DDS Website! Please continue to provide your feedback, so that we can continue offering our customers the best experience possible while visiting our site.I moved and have a new address. Do I have to let DDS know? YES, please update your DDS personnel record. Log on to TeamGeorgia, www.teamgeorgia.gov, go to Employee Self Service, Personal Information, and Update. It is very important to have your correct address in the system so that you can receive information, and on a timely basis, from State Health Benefit Plan (SHBP), your benefit plan providers and Human Resources. Have a question that you need answered? Send it to (add the newsletter email address) and we'll get an answer. Let us know if you want it answered in the next DDS Scoop or if you'd rather have someone contact you directly.